


but tonight you're a stranger

by patrichor



Series: invincible in a violet sea (ender dragon hybrid!ranboo) [3]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Animal Instincts, Blood and Injury, Corrupted Antfrost, Ender Dragon Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Hybrid Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Piglin Hybrid Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Protective Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Protective Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Protective Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Protective TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo-centric (Video Blogging RPF), antarctic anarchists reconciliation babey, corrupted badboyhalo, idk man tagging is hard im tired if i missed anything let me know, ranboo is a dragon and his hoard is people, thats right lads we're also getting an egg arc. eventually., they r family your honor..., wilbur isnt rlly in this one sorry he just shows up at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 13:09:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,953
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29207895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/patrichor/pseuds/patrichor
Summary: Damn it, why did the kid have to vanish right after getting hurt? He's going to have nightmares about the sound the axe made when it hit Ranboo's leg whenever he manages to sleep for months, now.Phil nods in return and takes off, knowing there's no time to waste. They have to treat the injury soon, or potions won't be effective enough to save the leg. At the very least, the axe hadn't gone through the bone. Limbs can be healed, but not reattached.Technoblade follows the now-familiar path towards the remains of L'Manberg. C'mon, kid, just hang on. We're coming.(Direct sequel to i'll bloody up my hands, starting right where the first one leaves off)
Relationships: Ranboo & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Technoblade & Phil Watson & TommyInnit, Ranboo & Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Technoblade & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Technoblade & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF)
Series: invincible in a violet sea (ender dragon hybrid!ranboo) [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2139606
Comments: 27
Kudos: 873
Collections: Completed stories I've read, Purrsonal Picks





	but tonight you're a stranger

**Author's Note:**

> okay yall voted for a longer feral ranboo section, and tbh i feel like it turned out better this way :' just goes to show yall have good taste, i guess :)

The dragon collapses as soon as he sees for himself that Dream has been killed. He distantly hears alarmed shouts and footsteps moving toward him and forces himself up, snarling in warning at people his eyes can't focus on. They stop short, and the winged one begins to speak to him in a soothing voice, though he can detect an undercurrent of worry that upsets him. Why is he upset that the man with wings is worried?

Something tells him that they are safe, that they will not hurt him, but he's afraid and in pain and he can't think clearly enough to recognize them. _Should he? Does he know them? Why does he feel the need to make sure they're okay?_

He scrambles back a few steps, wings out for balance as his leg drags awkwardly. A pained warble sounds in his throat before he can surpress it, and to his confusion the figures look sad. Why are they sad? Why does that make him sad?

His instincts whisper _no, they're safe. You protect them, remember? They're yours, they're safe, you can trust them._

The dragon cocks his head and awkwardly shuffles forward a little, then a little more, emboldened by the encouraging noises from the winged man. His gaze briefly switches to the other man, and something in him twinges at the pained look on his face. A low whine sounds from his chest and he changes course, hesitating for a moment a few feet away, and then something _tugs_. His head snaps up and he spins, wobbling on his good leg and ignoring the concerned shouts from the people near him as he spreads his wings. He can't push off from the ground with only one leg, so he pushes through the pain with a yelp and forces himself into a teleport, appearing high above and beginning to fall. His wings are already spread, though, and he instinctively understands how to catch air currents and stay aloft.

By no means is his flight graceful, but as he frantically beats his wings and propels himself forward, he finds that he's fast. He keeps having to adjust his balance to compensate for the leg dangling uselessly below him, but his wings are large and uninjured and he can cover distance faster than the man behind him, who is now also in the sky and following.

He doesn't have time to worry about the flying man, the tug pulling him onward. He sees purple on the ground below and goes toward it instinctively, barely managing to pull himself out of a dive before crashing in a snowdrift. He scrambles up, ignoring the shout of a word he thinks he should know and limping through the large frame.

Then he's somewhere different, and he has no time to look around as the overwhelming heat sends him crashing to his knees for a moment, gasping for air. But the tug doesn't let up, and so the dragon scrambles forward.

**~**

By the time Phil gets through the portal, Ranboo is nowhere to be seen. He lifts into the air to get a better look around and curses when nothing becomes apparent.

He lands to find Technoblade just arriving, and shakes his head at the unspoken question.

"He probably- he probably went to either L'Manberg or Snowchester, right?" Phil rationalizes. "That's where the other people he's claimed are most likely to be."

Technoblade nods. "I'll take L'Manberg, you check Snowchester." He rumbles, anxiety stirring in his chest. Damn it, why did the kid have to vanish right after getting hurt? He's going to have nightmares about the sound the axe made when it hit Ranboo's leg whenever he manages to sleep for months, now.

Phil nods in return and takes off, knowing there's no time to waste. They have to treat the injury soon, or potions won't be effective enough to save the leg. At the very least, the axe hadn't gone through the bone. Limbs can be healed, but not reattached.

Technoblade follows the now-familiar path towards the remains of L'Manberg. _C'mon, kid, just hang on. We're coming._

**~**

Tommy is in the egg chamber, nervously backing away from Badboyhalo and Antfrost as he laughs nervously. "Fellas, fellas! Really, I'm not gonna get in your way or anything- I just want to build a hotel in peace, you know?"

Bad lifts his trident, clothing empty of the usual red. "It's nothing personal, Tommy. But if the egg can't convince you, you're a threat and you have to go."

Tommy continues backpedaling, barely even paying attention to the words coming out of his mouth in an attempt to convince them to let him go. They're clearly not impressed, and Antfrost has just lifted his trident and taken aim when-

-the wall next to them explodes, and eight feet five inches of winged death go crashing into both of them, knocking them to the ground with a snarl. Tommy gapes, recognizing Ranboo, except since when did he have wings? And horns? And is that- is his mouth _glowing?!_ What the fuck!

"What the fuck?!" He splutters eloquently, staring as Ranboo leaps back and stands before him, wings spread protectively in a familiar gesture that makes Tommy's heart ache. Then he looks at the odd way Ranboo is moving, and his eyes go wide at the blood soaking his left leg and the way it mostly drags below him. He uses his wings and tail to compensate in his balance, Tommy realizes, and he feels sick at the amount of pain his friend must be in.

"Ranboo? Ranboo, what happened? What's going on?"

The only answer he gets is in the form of a floppy ear angling toward him at the sound of his voice, and a threatening snarl directed at the other two. Tommy searches his inventory for a healing potion, cursing when he finds none.

"Okay, Ranboo- Ranboo, we gotta go, c'mon, we gotta get out of here-" He grabs Ranboo's arm, letting go instantly as the other teen leaps back, hissing a little. What..?

He looks into Ranboo's eyes and his heart sinks at the look there. He's seen this state before, when they were younger and Techno would lose control. He knows what it looks like when a hybrid loses themself in their instincts. He holds up his hands, palms out, and starts speaking to Ranboo as encouragingly as he can, trying to suppress the stress leaking into his voice and only partially succeeding.

"It's okay- see it's me, Tommy- you're okay big man but we gotta get out of here, okay- c'mon, please just come with me- there's healing pots at my house, we gotta get you fixed up, man-"

Badboyhalo has been silent for a long time, head tilted as if he's listening to something the rest of them can't hear, and a slow smile spreads across his face. "Well," He says slyly, tail curling behind him with a smug air Tommy absolutely does not appreciate. "That's interesting." He raises his voice a little. "Hey, Ranboo. The egg wants to meet you."

**~**

The dragon doesn't understand what the tall one says, but he can sense the effect it has on the boy behind him. He growls warningly in response, letting the magic begin to gather in his throat. The purple glow leaks between his teeth and he turns to face the bad growth, glaring at the other hybrids. The message is clear- back off, or he fires at the bad growth.

It won't actually hurt the bad growth, is the thing. The dragon doesn't know what it is, but he can sense that much. What he somehow knows, though, is that the others don't know that. And if they run to the bad growth to try and save it, it most certainly will hurt _them_.

The boy is tugging at him again, and he lets himself be led, still facing forward and watching the two in the room with narrowed eyes.

Then they're in the corridor and moving faster, and the dragon exhales a small amount of death to slowly dissipate behind them and block any pursuers. Then he turns and lets the boy support him, limping as fast as he can toward the exit. They burst into the sunlight, the dragon finally unable to suppress the small whines that leave his throat every time he puts weight on his injured leg.

The boy is speaking soothingly to him, leading him somewhere. And the dragon is losing strength, but he's instantly alert again when another figure appears.

He recognizes pink hair and a familiar demeanor after a moment and a weak, relieved warble escapes him. He sees something in the man's expression soften, and the boy next to him must see it too, because after a brief, charged staredown between the two, he helps the dragon limp over to the pink man.

Strong arms catch the dragon and hold him with infinite care as he collapses onto the pink man, and the boy stands back, pretending not to care and turning his head away. The dragon can't have one of his being upset, so he reaches out and clumsily puts a hand on the boy's head, careful not to scratch him with his claws. The boy smiles a little, reaching up and holding the dragon's hand in both of his.

The dragon jolts and a high-pitched whimper escapes as he feels a splash of something cold on his hurt leg. Moments later, he relaxes again as the pain begins to fade. A large hand comes and begins to run through his hair, a low voice speaking to him calmly. Smaller hands hold one of his, thumbs rubbing gentle circles.

The dragon feels his body shaking as his wings fold and retreat into his back, and his horns and claws slide back under the skin. He nearly sobs from the pain, burying his face in the pink man's shirt.

After several agonizing minutes, it's finally over, and Ranboo tiredly opens his eyes.

**~**

Phil had found no sign of Ranboo in Snowchester, and was already on his way to L'Manberg when Tommy messaged him

_**TommyInnit whispers to you: technoblade told me to tell you ranboo's here** _   
_**You whisper to TommyInnit: i'm on my way** _   
_**You whisper to TommyInnit: thank you, tommy** _

He receives no response, but he thinks that's fair. Tommy did the important part and passed the message along, though he's concerned about what could be happening to Ranboo that would make Techno rely on Tommy for something instead of doing it himself.

He makes it through the portal a few minutes later and takes to the air, spotting the trio near Tommy's house, and swoops to land near them. He sees Ranboo, already shifted back, held in Techno's arms with the red cape draped around him and one of his hands clinging to Tommy just as tightly as the younger boy is clinging back.

"What happened?" He asks softly, putting a gentle hand on Ranboo's head.

Techno glances at him, but it's Tommy who answers.

"He saved me." He mutters. "Those fuckin'.. eggpire people were gonna kill me cause I'm immune to their mind control or some shit, and he busted down a wall outta nowhere and made them back off and now I think they want to mind control him into their egg cult."

Phil stares blankly into the distance, taking a moment to try and unpack that sentence, before deciding, you know what? Not his problem. He's supposed to be retired, damn it. He's too old to deal with whatever the hell is going on with a mind-controlling egg cult.

He notices Ranboo begin to stir, his eyes slowly opening, and decides to shelve whatever that business is for another time.

"Ranboo? You with us, mate?"

**~**

Slowly, Ranboo blinks at Phil, whose shoulders lose some of their tension as he sees recognition in the teen's face.

"Phil..?" Memory catches up and he jolts in Techno's hold, pushing back as much as the older hybrid will let him to look the two over frantically. "Are you guys okay? Dream- he didn't hurt you, did he?"

Phil shushes him gently, running a hand through his hair. "We're fine, Ranboo. You did a great job, okay? Just rest now."

Ranboo squints at him suspiciously for a moment before noticing Tommy. He spins toward him, wobbling and nearly falling before Techno steadies him, and performs the same inspection. "Tommy? Are you- did they hurt you? What did they do to you, why were you there?"

"I was investigating that weird fuckin' egg, because apparently it's gonna interfere with the hotel." Tommy grumbles, worry visibly leaving him as he watches his friend. "I'm fine. Worry about yourself, bitch, your leg was nearly off when you showed up."

Ranboo narrows his eyes at Tommy, but he doesn't see any injuries so he eventually nods and goes limp as Techno scoops him up in a secure carry. Really, it would be faster for Phil to fly back with him and have Techno follow on foot, but as Ranboo tiredly curls into his chest, Phil knows there's nothing short of immediate fatal danger that could get Techno to let go of the boy in his arms now. 

Techno turns to leave before hesitating and turning to Tommy. "If you- if you want to see him. You- can stop by. Sometime."

Tommy's eyes widen, but the trio leaves before he can muster any words, weakly returning Ranboo's goodbye wave.

The ender hybrid is asleep by the time they get back to the house, and Phil knows first transformations can be difficult but he hadn't expected it to be overwhelming enough for Ranboo's instincts to completely take over, however briefly. He remembers Ranboo's wings, clumsy but strong, and can't help the small smile on his face. He's missed flying with other people, he can hardly wait to teach Ranboo how to really use his wings.

**~**

When Ranboo wakes up, the first thing he notices is how warm he is, and how soft the blankets over him are. He blinks slowly, letting his eyes adjust to the room, and sees he's in a bed he recognizes as being Techno's. He doesn't remember why he's here, but that's hardly new for him. It's only when he turns his head that he sees Techno in a chair next to his bed, reading. The other man looks up when he feels eyes on him, and quickly closes his book.

"Hey, kid. How do you feel?" He sets the book aside, carefully helping Ranboo to a sitting position.

"I'm okay. Bit sore, but I'm fine." He bites his lip, noting the dull ache in his leg. "What, uh.. what happened?"

Technoblade scowls at the wall. "Dream tried takin' you and Phil hostage. Turns out you're a dragon hybrid, so it didn't go too well for him. You took off injured to rescue Tommy, and me an' Phil brought you back home."

Ranboo gets a flash of memory- an overwhelming pain in his leg and the sickening taste of blood in his mouth, all viewed through a detached filter of sheer rage. He shudders, hunching in on himself, and Techno immediately catches it and moves to sit next to Ranboo on the bed, curling around him reassuringly.

"It's fine," He mutters, letting the teen cling to him since he seems to derive comfort from it. "He won't get anywhere near you or Phil, ever again. I'll take care of it, so don't worry, okay?"

Ranboo nods shakily, slowly beginning to calm as Techno awkwardly pats his head. "You're still- you're still plot-relevant," He chokes out, slowly releasing his grip and not looking at Techno. "So, don't- don't take risks you don't have to, okay?"

Techno looks at him with quiet understanding. "Okay," He answers, and Ranboo relaxes, relieved. "Do you feel up to coming downstairs? Healing pots take a lot of energy, you need to eat."

Ranboo nods and accepts the hand Techno holds out to pull him to his feet and steady him when he wobbles. Together, they slowly make their way downstairs.

Phil and Tommy are sitting at the kitchen table, both rising when they catch sight of the other two.

"Ranboo!" Tommy scampers over, eyes brighter than Ranboo has seen them in a while. "You've been out for like three days, big man. Was starting to wonder if you'd wake up!"

"Sorry," Ranboo's tail wraps around Tommy's ankle as he grabs the older teen, surprisingly patient as he helps him over to the table. Surprisingly, Techno doesn't even seem bothered by letting Tommy support Ranboo instead of him, and he wonders what he missed while he was unconscious.

Ghostbur smiles at him from where he's sitting across the table, something that looks like messy handwritten sheet music on the papers in front of him. "Hey, Ranboo. Glad to see you're alright."

Phil ruffles Ranboo's hair and passes him a plate of food, and he realizes how hungry he is. He takes the time to thank the older man, and then starts consuming the food as though he'd never eaten in his life. Tommy cackles and returns to his own food, and Techno and Phil share a soft look as they sit back down next to the teens, listening as laughter and excited chatter fills the air.

This is what has been missing, Techno thinks. He closes his eyes and lets the sounds of his family wash over him, warming his heart like sunlight on his shoulders. There is danger on the horizon and he still has mixed feelings about Tommy, but for now the people he cares about are safe and that's all that matters.

**Author's Note:**

> basically what i originally had was uhhh this without the tommy part? so ranboo just collapses on them in the clearing and wakes up at the house, etc etc
> 
> i think i like it more this way tbh, also got to set up a possible eggpire arc for the future
> 
> also narrative tropes as a way of expressing affection?? with these fuckin nerds, its more likely than u think :'


End file.
